


The Fine Print

by AngularNotions



Category: Grimm (TV)
Genre: Attempted Rape, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-10-18
Updated: 2012-10-18
Packaged: 2017-11-16 13:29:35
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 9
Words: 21,326
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/539939
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AngularNotions/pseuds/AngularNotions
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Being a Grimm becomes far more complicated for Nick Burkhardt when he reads a passage in his Aunt's books. It's up to Monroe to help him understand it and then through it before another one of the creatures he encounters makes him their slave.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

It had been over 6 months since Nick Burkhardt had found out he was a Grimm.

In that time he had faced countless strange monsters and even stranger situations. But nothing could prepare him for what he was looking at on that page in the antique book his Aunt had left him.

_“The Grimm is feared by the creature world, for they can see the true self and therefore destroy. But the Grimm is also desired by strong members of the Wessen, to join with one gives them power over that Grimm, thereby making them the leader of the Grimm, forcing them to do their will.”_

Join with them? Nick stared at the passage on the page and the adjoining sketch that depicted what he presumed was the ‘joining’. Except it looked a lot more like sex than anything, though he supposed that was a type of joining in a way.

He had been looking for more information on Ziegevolk after a string of disappearances in the area. It had been Monroe who had pointed out that another one of that type of creature might have come into town.

But Nick had stumbled across this strange passage at the end of the book and really didn’t know what to think. Being naturally curious he decided to go ask Monroe what he knew about the subject.

When he arrived at the Blutbad’s house, the lights were still on, indicating that he was still up, even at that ridiculous hour. Nick felt better about that, he didn’t want to disturb him too much, but he really needed to know what he knew about this joining practice and how it might affect him as a Grimm.

It took ringing the bell twice before the Blutbat wrenched the door open, hostility clear on his face for being disrupted at whatever he was doing. When his eyes hit Nick though, he softened and motioned for the other man to enter without saying a word until he closed the door.

“Find the Ziegevolk yet? I was right, wasn’t I? There is another one. Beer?”

Nick waved off the proffered drink, wanting to keep a clear head to fully understand the information he needed.

Monroe popped the lid off of his own bottle and strolled over to the couch and sat down, looking at Nick questioningly.

“I haven’t found the Ziegevolk, though I think your right. I wanted to ask you about something else though, I found a weird passage in my Aunt’s book and I need to know what it means.”

“It was a passage in a book about supposed mythical creatures who are actually real monsters and this particular one struck you as weird, the whole damn book is weird Nick.”

“Ok, I don’t disagree, but still. What do you know about joining, between a Wessen and a Grimm?”

The way Monroe’s hand tightened on the bottle and his eyes darted away told Nick he knew quite a lot. Monroe had the worst poker face on the planet.

“Monroe, what do you know?”  
Monroe sighed loudly; clearly not happy about talking about this, making Nick even more curious.

“The story goes like this, Grimm’s are the enemy of the creature world, but there is a loophole essentially. If a Wessen, meaning any type of creature, joins with a Grimm, then that creature can essentially control the Grimm, tell them who to kill and who to save and so on.”

“Ok, so if a creature, say even like you, were to join with me, then you would have control over what I do?”

Nick noticed the colour creep into Monroe’s cheeks and couldn’t understand why, then he remembered the sketch.

“Wait, what exactly is involved in the joining?”

Monroe studied the coffee table intently while answering.

“Um, it’s uh, well, sex basically. The Wessen has to do ** _it_** with the Grimm, biting them at the end to mark their territory essentially.”

Now Nick understood the blush, since he had just basically created the hypothetical situation of Monroe having sex with him to join them.

“Oh. That explains the sketch. Do Grimm’s have a choice in this matter?”

“Yes and no, a Grimm can certainly choose to join with a creature if that’s what they want,” Monroe continued to avoid eye contact, “but more often than not it’s forced by a creature who wants more power.”

Nick nodded.

“Relax Monroe, I’m not here to join with you, I just wanted to know what it was.”

Monroe looked up then, though it wasn’t relief at his words that Nick saw, for once his expression was indecipherable.

“Listen Nick, with a Ziegevolk back in town, be careful, they are notorious for going after Grimm’s because they are not that physically powerful in defending themselves, so having a bodyguard in the form of a Grimm is something they always try to obtain.”

“So basically I should be on the lookout for a creature that is trying to rape me.”

Monroe’s eyes darted sideways in thought for a second and then back at Nick.

“Yup, pretty much. Good thing you have a gun.”

Nick laughed once.

“Yeah, good thing.”

“But keep in mind, it’s not just Ziegevolk’s, any creature who discovers who you are may be a potential threat, it depends on how much power they want and need. I don’t really run with the crowd anymore, so I don’t get the gossip, but I’m sure you’re the talk of the town, if the Wessen world was a town I mean.”

“Is this how some of them figure out what I am? I mean, is there some sort of sixth sense or something when they see me?”

“No, the instinct to join with you doesn’t rear it’s head until they find out you are a Grimm, it’s a weird thing, but once a creature knows you’re a Grimm, they will feel drawn to you and scared of you all at once. But once a Grimm is joined to a creature, they are no longer desirable to any of the others.”

“Hence the marking, that’s a visible notification that they are under the spell of a creature.”  
“Essentially.”

Nick rolled the information over in his mind, this damn Grimm thing got more complicated by the second, but this particular tidbit was more nefarious than the rest it seemed.

“Wait, so creatures are drawn to me, want to fuck me essentially, once they know I’m a Grimm. Are you drawn to me like that?”

Nick couldn’t help the weird flip he felt in this chest at that moment, he knew Monroe wouldn’t hurt him but based on what he had just been told, he wanted to know how the other man saw him.

“I’m Wieder, meaning I have suppressed my natural instincts, all of them.”

The way his eyes shifted as he answered told Nick that was he was lying. But he wasn’t too worried about that, he knew Monroe would never try anything, but at the same time, he wondered how much the Blutbad had thought about joining with him.

The conversation was getting really awkward now and Nick decided it was a good time to leave before it got worse.

“Well thanks, for the help, I won’t disturb your evening any longer. Um, I guess I’ll talk to you later.”

Monroe stood and trailed behind him as he went to the door.

“Yeah, sure, no problem. Good luck finding the Ziegevolk. And Nick.”

Nick turned to look at him, and again, his expression was impossible to read.

“Yeah, what’s up?”  
“Be careful, a lot of creatures know about you now, you need to be on guard.”

Nick nodded, he fully intended on it.


	2. Chapter 2

A few days later, Nick and Hank found the offending Ziegevolk, though Hank just saw the guy as a regular perp they had collared. The women were returned to their families and the case was quickly handed off to the DA. The creature had figured out Nick’s secret as usual and had smiled ever so slightly when he did so. Nick had noticed that several creatures had smiled when they figured him out, but now he knew why and couldn’t help but feel really creeped out.

When he got home that night, the ache of exhaustion between his shoulders he decided to take a hot shower and finally get some sleep.

Juliette was out of town, visiting friends in Seattle so he had the house to himself. Though he missed her presence, he enjoyed the quiet.

He stood in the shower letting the hot water relax his tense muscles and reran the conversation he had had with Monroe over in his head again. Since they had spoken he had been replaying it repeatedly, trying to decipher some of Monroe’s words and facial expressions as well as trying to come to terms with the new threat he now faced.

He didn’t hear the bathroom door open, as lost in his thoughts as he was, but he felt the hand grab his arm and yank him from the shower and into the bedroom and down on the floor on his back. The other man was on top of him immediately, pressing him into the carpet and spreading his wet legs open. Nick managed a rough punch to the side of the creature’s head. Though he wasn’t sure what type of creature he was dealing with, he knew it had to be one of some kind. In response to his punch the other man placed a hand on Nick’s throat and starting squeezing. Using both hands to try to lift the hand away from his throat Nick struggled for air and started seeing stars and blackness on the fringe of his vision. As he began to weaken from lack of oxygen the creature let go and he gulped in air gratefully.

He felt movement between them and heard the distinct sound of a zipper. Making the half joke with Monroe about being raped was one thing, but when it was suddenly about to happen, it was definitely not funny anymore. Nick started thrashing again, trying to dislodge the larger man on top of him so he could at least get to his gun but the other man was heavy, very heavy and none of his attempted blows seemed to be doing any good.

The creature managed to get a hold of both of Nicks arms, holding them above his head while also balancing on them, using his full weight to prevent Nick from freeing his arms.

Nick felt a hard rod against his ass and a fresh wave of panic broke through him and he realized it was going to happen, and he wouldn’t be able to stop it.

But suddenly the beast was gone, lifted off of him at such a speed that it took Nick a second to even register that he was gone. He heard a loud bang and looked over to see his attacker struggling to free himself from the drywall hole he was now lodged in.

Looking for the reason behind the man being in his wall, the first thing Nick saw was plaid, bright blue and yellow plaid and he knew immediately. Monroe.

He watched the two creatures struggling, his attacker revealing himself to be a Jagerbar, though Nick didn’t recognize him as being one he had actually crossed paths with.

The two creatures snarled and fought their way across the room until the Jagerbar saw an opening and ran down the stairs and out the front door. He heard Monroe stop giving chase and he came back to Nick, worry on his face.

Nick sat up, aching all over from the attack. He glanced up at Monroe and discovered the other man staring at him in a rather peculiar way that Nick couldn’t quite distinguish, but it seemed appreciative and kind of curious and almost lustful.

Nick then realized he was naked, having been wrenched from the shower, he was completely nude and still quite wet. Monroe caught Nick looking at him and quickly averted his eyes, colour staining his cheeks again. He reached to the foot of the bed and quickly threw Nick a blanket.

Feeling as though a towel would be better, Nick still wrapped it around himself to attempt to regain some dignity.

He looked at Monroe who was continuing to avoid eye contact.

“Um, maybe you could give me a minute to get dressed here?”  
Monroe seemed to get a bit startled at the suggestion.

“Oh, yeah, sorry sorry man, yeah, I’ll uh, I’ll wait downstairs, though I can go, I mean, he’s gone, so…”

Nick felt strongly that he didn’t want the blutbad to leave completely; he was suddenly feeling a little afraid of being alone.

“No, don’t go,” Nick realized he had said this more desperately than he intended and trying to regain some composure, “I mean, just wait in the hall for a few minutes. We’ll talk once I’m dressed.”

Monroe nodded quickly and stumbled slightly over his own feet as he scrambled out the door of the bedroom, slamming it slightly behind him.

Nick wrapped his arms around his knees and sat for a minute processing what had just happened. It had been so close, the man had been literally seconds from impaling Nick’s ass when Monroe had stopped him and the thought of that made Nick’s stomach churn slightly. He felt as though he wanted another shower, feeling the Jagerbar’s hands still on his body, his dick still against his ass. He could hear the water running and stood, fighting through the aches, and went back into the bathroom. He stepped into the tepid shower and scrubbed his body thoroughly.

After toweling off and getting dressed, he went to find Monroe and found him standing just on the other side of the bedroom door, worry etched on his face.

“Are you ok?”  
Nick nodded. “I just needed a minute.”

Monroe gave him a look of understanding and then fidgeted with the hem of his shirt.

“Monroe, how did you know? I mean, why were you here? Don’t get me wrong, I’m extremely happy you were, you have no idea how grateful I am that you stopped him, but I’m just curious as to why you were here.”

Monroe’s eyes moved to the floor and the fidgeting got more feverish.

Suddenly he looked up, clearly something important to say.

“I’ve been keeping at eye on you, ok? I mean, you’re a new Grimm, you are still figuring all of that out, and now you have this new extra problem to deal with and I was worried about you.”

Once he was finished he returned to staring at the floor and fidgeting.

Nick took his words in and tried to process them. On the one hand, he was eternally grateful for Monroe’s help, it was thanks to the Blutbad that he wasn’t being brutally raped right at that moment. On the other hand, he was desperately curious as to why Monroe found him important enough to protect. Monroe’s behaviour during their conversation about joining and now that evening was adding up to something, but Nick didn’t have the solution yet.

“Well, thank you, I’m very glad you were watching. You have no idea how grateful I am.”

Monroe nodded softly, still watching the floorboards closely.

“Listen, um, maybe you should crash here tonight, just in case he comes back, I don’t want to try to take him on alone or anything.”

Monroe’s head shot up and he stared at Nick in surprise.

Nick motioned him down the hall and showed him the guest room, which Monroe accepted graciously.

Nick said thank you a few more times before it became awkward.

Excusing himself back to his own room, Nick surveyed the damage to the wall and discovered that it wouldn’t be a hugely difficult job to fix, but very time consuming. Cleaning up what he could Nick finally settled into bed and was immediately invaded by thoughts about Monroe as usual. He still wasn’t sure what was going on with the Blutbad in regards to himself, but he was determined to find out.

 

* * *

 

It had taken him forever to fall asleep but he woke up early just the same. He heard noises coming from the kitchen and tensed for a second before he remembered that Monroe was there. The Blutbad had his little routine and clearly followed it no matter where he was.

Sitting up was agony, the bruises from the assault were fully formed and his muscles screamed at being used again.

His hips and thighs were particularly tender after having been wrenched apart by the much larger man. He made his way slowly to the bathroom to survey the damage.

He had bruises around his throat from the attempted strangling and marks on his arms and wrists from them being restrained. But all in all, he knew it could be so much worse.

He splashed some cold water on his face and brushed his teeth before making his way downstairs to join Monroe in the kitchen.

He had no idea how, but the Blutbad had some of his fancy coffee with him and had brewed up a pot and offered Nick a cup the moment he walked in the kitchen.

Exhaustion still holding him hostage he accepted it gratefully.

Things were awkward between them and Nick hated that, but he was also happy that Monroe was still there. Tense as things were between them, he still felt safer with the big wolf around.

His phone buzzed on the counter and Hank’s name blazed on the screen, they had a new case evidently.

“Hank, what’s up?”

“Hey Nick, we got a dead body, I’ll text you the address, meet me there.”

“You got it.”

He hung up and glanced up at Monroe who was watching him intently but shifted his eyes the moment that Nick’s met them.

“I gotta go; caught a case. Listen, thanks again for last night, you seriously saved me.”

“Don’t worry about it, be careful out there. Call me if you need anything.”

“I will, and thanks for the coffee.”

Nick slipped upstairs and got dressed, he heard Monroe go out the front door and the familiar growl of his car engine starting. He had no idea what was going on with him, but he had to worry about it later.


	3. Chapter 3

The case was a gunshot victim, found underneath a bridge downtown. A well dressed man, wearing obviously expensive clothing, but missing his wallet and watch. Both Nick and Hank agreed that it was a robbery gone bad.

Nick searched for any signs that a Wessen might have been involved and found nothing. For once it was just a case of a human killing another human and he realized that he almost felt relief at that fact, as sick as that was.

It took a few days but they eventually collared the guy who had done it. He was a 19-year-old junkie who had robbed the other man to get money for more drugs. He hadn’t intended on shooting the guy, but shit had happened and someone had ended up dead.

Nick was perpetually on the lookout for the Jagerbar who had attacked him, everywhere he went he was searching for the face he had seen but didn’t get any glimpses.

He hadn’t spoken to Monroe since that morning after, though the case wasn’t Wessen related so there was no reason to call on him anyway but Nick still felt a bit guilty.

He had a feeling that the Blutbad was still keeping an eye on him, but he was doing so at a safe and hidden distance.

Juliette arrived home on Friday that week and she was quite alarmed at the bruises on Nick’s body, but he had managed to placate her that he was fine, and the person responsible had been dealt with accordingly. He hated lying to her, but in the end, there was very little he could tell her without the entire truth coming out.

Saturday saw another case come in, a teenager was pulled from the water and it looked like they had been half eaten. The M.E. had pulled them in and explained that it appeared that something with crocodile type teeth had done the eating. Hank was perplexed, there were no crocodiles in Oregon, and Nick knew it was time to go talk to Monroe. Clearly the case was Wessen related.

He tried calling but got no answer, feeling that a bit odd he told Hank he was going to talk to Juliette about something and headed over to the wolf’s house.

His car was in the driveway and after knocking and ringing the doorbell for around five minutes, the door finally swung open.

Nick gasped a bit in surprise at what greeted him. Monroe’s face was beaten pretty badly. His eye was red from blood and black around the outside in bruising, there was a nasty gash on his forehead and he appeared to have a split lip.

“Monroe, what happened?” Nick rushed forward to get a closer look and without even thinking touched his cheek where he could see a dark bruise.

Monroe backed up a few feet in surprise and Nick pulled his hand back.

“Nothing, I’m fine, just that whole upsetting the status quo thing again. What’s up?”  
His attempt at bravado was poorly executed and Nick knew he probably wasn’t even close to getting the whole story.

“I caught a case, something weird as usual and wanted to see what you knew, but don’t worry about it, tell me exactly what happened.”  
“Nick, don’t worry about it ok? I knew what the stakes were when I befriended a Grimm, I’m not worried so you shouldn’t be either.”

His eyes shifted away from Nick as he spoke, giving away that he was lying still and he was clearly shaken up by what had happened.

“Monroe, come on, it’s me, tell me the truth, who did this?”  
The wolf continued staring at the floor, intent on ignoring Nick’s question.

“What is the case?”

“Monroe…”

“Nick, leave it, it’s not a problem ok, what is the case?”

Nick sighed in frustration, giving up for the moment.

“We pulled a kid out of the water, the M.E. thinks he’s been chewed on by a crocodile, we are in Oregon, so I know that can’t be the case, any ideas?”

Monroe shrugged a little and tilted his head.

“Could be a Skalenzahne, though I haven’t heard of a case of them attacking a human in a while.”

“What are they?”

“They are like crocodiles, you’ve met one already, they are pretty popular for Lowen games because they are great fighters and fairly violent, though like I said, they are generally peaceful with humans unless they taste human flesh, then they go into a bit of a frenzy. If it is one, this isn’t the first time they have eaten a human.”

“One of the fighters at the Lowen games was one? The guy in the ring, it must have been. But he’s behind bars, so it can’t be him now, do you know of any others in the area?”  
“Again, Nick, I’m out of the loop, I don’t associate really with any Wessen anymore, it’s how I stay Wieder.”

Nick was noticing a distinct lack of patience on Monroe’s part with their entire conversation. The wolf was not himself, there was no jovial banter or quick wit, he was just serious and seemed angry.

“Alright, you know what, obviously something is really wrong, what happened to you is a lot more than you are telling me, so start talking.”

This earned him a stern glare and Nick worried for a second that he might have pushed too hard.

“Alright fine, you want to know? I got jumped by a bunch of strong Wessen, all different kinds of nasty beasties who are pretty pissed with me.”

“Why are they pissed with you?”  
“They think I have joined with you, that I got to you first, they heard from the Jagerbar that I stopped him so they are just assuming that I have gotten to you myself.”

Nick was stunned, he had no idea how to even react to this news. He realized that since the night of the attack he hadn’t come into contact with any Wessen that he knew of and so none of them knew the truth that he wasn’t marked.

“Did you tell them the truth?”  
It seemed to Nick that simply telling the truth may have stopped the beating. But Monroe’s downcast eyes told him the answer to his question.

“Monroe, why wouldn’t you tell them the truth, it probably would have saved you from getting your ass kicked.”

“Maybe, but oddly enough I was being pretty selfless, because you see, if they think I have joined with you, then hopefully they will leave you alone. I did it to protect you.”  
“You didn’t have to do that, look what they did to you.”

“I’m fine, I can handle this, and I’ve had worse frankly, and really dude, your fucking welcome.”

Nick realized he hadn’t thanked him, the gravity of what Monroe had done for him settled on him and he felt guilty for not being more grateful.

“Ok, I’m sorry, trust me when I tell you that I’m grateful, so thank you, but I wish you hadn’t gotten beat up for it, I mean, you really didn’t have to do that for me.”  
Monroe hit him then with an expression that was unreadable, but there was definitely some hurt behind it. Nick realized that to be a Wieder meant that the Blutbad had to isolate himself, pretty much from the world and he was probably the only person that Monroe associated with on a regular basis. In essence, he was his only friend, and he had taken a beat down to protect his only friend.

“Monroe, I’m sorry, I’ve handled this wrong, I’m very thankful for your help the other night and for what you did for me. You are a true friend and really, you have been the only person keeping me sane for the past few months and I know I could never have done any of this without you.”  
Monroe’s face softened and he nodded and looked down.

“Well, don’t thank me too much for this, in your line of work you are bound to come across a creature of some kind who will quickly spread the word that you are still up for grabs. So keep alert.”

“I know, but for now, at least I’m a bit safer.”

Monroe nodded again.

“Listen, do you want me to hang out with you tonight, that cut on your head looks bad.”

“Aren’t you working on a case?”  
“Hank’s on it, and it’s not like I can tell him that it’s a Skalenzahne anyway. Maybe you could tell me more about them?”  
Monroe relaxed more and led Nick into the kitchen where he pulled two beers out of the fridge for them. They retreated to the living room and sat on the couch talking about Nick’s potential suspect and things felt almost back to normal. Nick was still taken aback at what the Blutbad had done for him but didn’t let him know that.

Monroe seemed to be happy and relaxed with him there and feeling like he owed him one Nick slept on his couch to be nearby should he be needed.


	4. Chapter 4

He found the Skalenzahne almost two weeks, and four more murders, later.

The man had been a part of the Lowen games that Nick and Monroe had discovered a few months earlier but had escaped and been hiding for some time before his lust for blood overtook him and he snatched the teenager.

They managed to get him without killing him and Nick knew that he had noticed his unmarked status as he put him in the police car. It was only a matter of time before word got out that Monroe hadn’t joined with him. He had to watch his back again.

That night he double-checked all of his locks and put his gun in reach before going to bed. Juliette was out of town again at a training camp for new medications available for veterinarians and he was glad she was gone in a way. It was becoming hard enough to protect himself without having to worry about her all the time as well. She was getting more and more fed up each day it seemed with him as well. He was constantly distracted and she complained about how much time he spent working or over at Monroe’s house and not with her. He hated to admit it, but his Aunt’s advice was starting to make some sense.

He woke up with a start in the middle of the night. His heart pounding he listened hard for any signal as to why he had jumped awake and heard nothing. Glancing at the clock he saw that it was almost one and grumbled to himself.

Then he heard what sounded like someone sniffing and he froze instantly. The noise came again but was closer and Nick reached for his gun but his hand was caught half way and wrenched above his head. The intruder was on top of him instantly, pinning him to the mattress. The man leaned close to his face and sniffed again and Nick could only stare, trying to get some facial feature in the dark to give him a clue as to who was on top of him.

The attacker used his free hand to grab Nick’s shirt at the collar and rip it downward. Then cold fingers trailed over his shoulders and his chest, as though he was searching for something and Nick realized he was looking for a mark of some kind. Evidently he had heard Nick had joined with Monroe, but then heard that it wasn’t true. He was searching for the evidence and then laughed low in his chest when he didn’t find any.

Confirmation that Nick was indeed still up for grabs jumped the attacker into action and Nick felt the blankets get kicked down off of him. As the man lifted himself slightly and grabbed for the waistband of Nick’s pants he used the opportunity to roll away and try to get off the bed, but he only succeeded in twisting his own arm and ending up on his stomach. He could feel the other mans erection grinding against his ass and knew that rolling was the worst mistake he had made.

He felt fingers at his waistband again and then his pants were ripped down violently. He struggled as much as he could with only one arm and his legs spread apart and got nowhere. The man continued to grind against his ass, now flesh on flesh and Nick felt as though he was going to throw up, but knew it was only going to get worse before it was over. He heard the man spit and then felt a hand between his legs and then fingers at his entrance as the man attempted to open him up. He forced the first finger in and Nick yelped in pain at the intrusion. His attacker only laughed, deep and gravelly in his chest. As he continued to fuck Nick’s ass with his finger he started kissing and licking Nick’s neck, then sucking and leaving bruises.

Nick felt the second finger go in and his muscles clenched instinctively causing even more pain. The third finger followed quickly and the man quickly spread them while forcing them in and out roughly.

They both stopped moving when they heard the growl nearby. His attacker growled louder above him and then snarled. Nick realized at that moment that his rapist was another Blutbad. He hoped at that moment that the other growl he heard was Monroe and not a different attacker coming to have a try at him.

The growling from the two in the room was getting more intense and the fingers were ripped from him roughly as his attacker went into a more protected stance. Clearly he wasn’t going to willingly give Nick up to the other one in the room. He released Nick’s arm and Nick instinctively pulled himself up into a ball under the other man, it was the only way to try to protect himself at that point, his gun having been knocked away. The other Blutbad in the room launched himself at his attacker and knocked him off the other side of the bed and Nick now had someone else perched over top of him, but this was protective. The new person was over him on all fours and hunched down to cover as much of Nick as possible. He could feel soft fabric against his arm and tentatively reached up to touch it to try to ID them and felt soft flannel. It was Monroe; it had to be.

The ousted Blutbad snarled more at Monroe and got an even angrier response. Nick had never heard him sound like that and while it was terrifying on the one hand, he was glad it was in protection of himself and he wasn’t on the receiving end.

Finally his attacker seemed to give up and took off out the door and down the stairs. Monroe remained in position for several minutes after; Nick assumed it was because he was making sure the other one was gone.

He heard an angry grunt from the wolf and then a much softer “Nick?”

“It is you, holy shit, Monroe, thank you… I…”

Nick was overcome with emotion, and he could feel his body shaking in response to everything that had just happened. He felt strong arms go around him and then he was lifted up and cradled against Monroe’s warm flannel covered chest.

He knew that he would feel really weird about this later, but at that moment it was what he wanted. He felt safe in Monroe’s arms, and leaned against his chest gratefully. Monroe moved one arm and he felt a blanket go around his shoulders and then he was being held again and softly rocked.

“Shhhh Nick, it’s ok, take it easy.”

“He got so close… I couldn’t stop him…”

“I know, it’s over now, just breathe.”  
Nick just pressed closer to Monroe, taking in the scent of clean laundry and the other man.

He had no idea how they long they stayed that way but when he felt his muscles start to ache from being held so tense he knew he needed to move. Monroe let him go but kept a hand on his back supportively and he leaned over and turned on the lamp.

Nick blinked from the bright light and wrapped the blanket around his shoulders more.

“Are you ok? Should I take you to the hospital?”

Nick shook his head. “No, it’s not serious, just some more bruises, I’m fine.”

Monroe gently moved the blanket near Nick’s neck and frowned at the bruises there.

“Don’t worry about them, they will heal.”  
Monroe nodded but still looked concerned.

“Listen, why don’t you go take a hot shower, I’ll be here, I think it will help you.”  
Nick nodded; it was a good idea. He wasn’t opposed to just crawling back into Monroe’s arms again either but decided against that for the time being because it would be a bit weird.

Once in the bathroom, he removed what was left of his clothes and turned the water on high. He scrubbed every inch of his skin thoroughly, wincing and even crying out in pain when he got to his ass, but he kept scrubbing. He was desperate to rid his body of the other man.

When he had finished, he dressed again quickly, avoiding looking at himself in the mirror, he didn’t want to face the bruises yet.

When he came out of the bathroom, he found Monroe sitting on the edge of the bed; he had kept his promise and Nick was grateful.

“Listen, do you want me to stay tonight again?”  
Nick nodded, and Monroe smiled in understanding.

“Do you want me to stay with you for a while right now? Or do you want to try to sleep?”

Nick considered the offer, but decided to try sleeping, though he knew he wouldn’t but he didn’t want to keep the clearly tired Blutbad from doing so himself.

“No, I’m ok, it could have been so much worse but it wasn’t, thanks to you.” Nick smiled at him and hoped it looked normal enough.

“You sure?”  
“Yeah, I’m good. Go get some sleep. I’m sure we will be left alone for the rest of the night.”  
Monroe looking dubious, though Nick wasn’t sure if it was because he didn’t believe that he was ok, or that they would be left alone. But he nodded anyway and stood and left. Nick heard the guest room door close a minute later.

He sat down on the edge of the bed, feeling completely wired from adrenaline and panic. Being alone again he was forced to deal with what had happened more clearly. He could still feel the fingers inside of him and the breath and tongue on his neck. His stomach churned and he quickly headed back to the bathroom, barely making it to the toilet on time. When the heaving finally stopped he stood and rinsed his mouth and trudged back to the bed and laid down. He kept reminding himself that it could have been worse but honestly felt that it had been pretty bad as it was. He curled up on his side and closed his eyes, trying to fall asleep to escape his own mind but it wouldn’t cooperate.

He kept looking at the clock, and silently cursed every time he checked and it was only five or ten minutes later than the last time he had checked. When it hit four in the morning, he felt a fresh wave of panic as he heard his neighbour putting their garbage out.

Feeling completely terrified by his own thoughts and the innocuous noises coming from outside he got up and slipped down the hall to the guest bedroom door. He listened outside for a few minutes for the sound of Monroe’s breath as he slept. He just wanted to be close to the Blutbad, to feel safe again and when he was reasonably sure that he was asleep Nick slowly turned the door handle and opened it a crack. He could see Monroe on his stomach, fully clothed on the bed. His face was in a frown, like he was dreaming about something unpleasant and Nick had a few ideas what it could be.

He crept through the door, intending only to sit on the big soft chair in the room for a while, just to calm down a little, but now that he was in the room he suddenly felt as though he wanted to crawl onto the bed beside Monroe and curl up against him.

He realized how insane that idea was, but felt his body gravitating towards the bed anyway.

He sat down on the opposite side and watched Monroe carefully for any response. He realized then that he should be careful about potentially waking a Blutbad, the result could be very painful for him.

Knowing this, Nick laid down on his side facing Monroe, but not touching him. Being in proximity to the wolf was calming his nerves and so he decided not to push his luck any further.

He finally felt as though he could sleep, he felt safe again and closed his eyes. As he drifted off he realized his relationship with Monroe was now going to be really complicated, but he decided to deal with that issue later.


	5. Chapter 5

He was surrounded by warmth when he woke up and could feel something solid next to him. Something solid and warm and he moved towards it instinctively before realizing what it was. Cracking open one eye he got a full visual of plaid, this time green, and realized he was snuggled up against Monroe.

More to the point, Monroe had his arm around Nick, holding him tight against his chest and under a quilt that Nick didn’t remember putting over himself.

Monroe stirred beside him and grunted a bit.

“Morning sunshine, are you warm enough?”  
Nick opened both eyes and glanced up at him through the quilt and flannel surrounding his head. He decided to avoid the obvious elephant in the room of them cuddled up together in bed.

“Yeah, where did this quilt come from?”

“I put it over you during the night. I don’t know when you ended up here, but I woke up to the bed shaking from you shivering.”

Nick kept his face down to hide his embarrassment from crawling into bed beside Monroe because he was scared of the noises his neighbour was making. Thankfully, Monroe wasn’t asking him about it either.

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to wake you.”  
“No problem.”

As much as he didn’t want to admit it out loud, he was happy curled up against the larger man, as he had been the night before, he felt safe in Monroe’s arms and really didn’t want to move. At the same time, he was worried that he was making the Blutbad uncomfortable with his actions.

“Um, do you want some coffee? Breakfast?”

“Sure, I can get the coffee going though, you just take it easy.”  
His phone beeped in the other bedroom and he knew immediately that it was Hank and taking it easy just went out the window.

“I would love to relax, but it sounds like duty calls.”  
With that he untangled himself from the blanket and Monroe and slid off the bed. Wincing with each step as his body fought back at the movement. Monroe sat up and looked at him with worry clearly etched on his face, and Nick tried to smile as reassuringly as possible at him, hoping to somehow put the previous night behind them.

Hank had texted him about a body and an address. He actually felt slightly scared of going outside and being away from Monroe, but knew he had to man up, he had a gun after all and he did know how to use it. Then he remembered that his gun had been knocked away during the attack and he started looking around for it.

As he was looking under the bed he heard Monroe come into the room.

“What the hell are you doing?”  
“My gun, it got misplaced last night and I really need to find it.”  
“It’s on the bedside table Nick, I put it there last night since I assumed you would see it there.”  
Nick sat up and looked and sure enough, there it was. Feeling a bit stupid for missing it entirely he pulled himself back up to standing and nodded and gave Monroe a small smile before heading to the bathroom to get ready to go.

After getting washed and dressed he went back into the bedroom and found the wolf sitting on the edge of his bed, watching him with concerned eyes.

“Nick, are you sure your ok enough to go back to work?”

“I don’t really have much of a choice, this is the nature of my job. But I’m fine, don’t worry about me.”

Monroe’s face told him that he didn’t believe Nick’s story for a second but after opening his mouth to protest, he closed it and resigned himself.

“Well, you call me if you need me, ok?”

“Yeah, I will, but honestly, I’m good, it could have been worse, but it wasn’t, thanks to you and I have to continue with my life.”  
Monroe nodded.

Once Nick was ready they left the house together, and Nick said thank you one more time before heading off to find Hank and the crime scene. Parting from Monroe was a little harder than he thought it would be. Without the Blutbad beside him he felt exposed, and vulnerable. He hated feeling like this, that he couldn’t even protect himself. But it was hard to deny the fact that Monroe had saved him twice already. Two times he hadn’t been able to stop his attackers and Monroe had stepped in and this made him feel weak, not just as a man, but as a Grimm. He was supposed to be able to kill these creatures, to be their biggest enemy and instead, two of them had almost raped him in the span of just a few weeks. This did not bode well for the future.

The body was a prostitute, well known to law enforcement. She had ligature marks around her throat and petechial hemorrhaging in her eyes. It appeared to be non-Wessen related and Nick breathed a sigh of relief at that.

He threw himself into the case, desperate for a distraction to the flashbacks he kept having of fingers forcing themselves into his ass, and a wet mouth sucking marks on his neck. They had a suspect in custody by the end of the day, buying them the night off. Hank invited him out for a drink as they were leaving. He had been watching Nick with worried eyes the entire day and he knew his partner was concerned about his behaviour.

They settled on stools at the bar, and Hank waited until they had their drinks before he began.

“Nick, what’s going on, you look like you’ve just seen a ghost all day. Has something happened?”  
These were the moments Nick really hated. When he couldn’t tell his partner and ally, essentially the person he trusted most with his life, the truth. On the one hand he longed to talk to someone else about what was going on, just to get a different perspective. But on the other, he knew just how insane everything going on his life sounded and didn’t even know where he would begin.

“It’s nothing, just coming down with something I think.”  
 “Is it Juliette? She’s been away a lot, is something going on between you two?”  
Nick debated on telling the truth on this score. It would be a good deflection.

“We aren’t exactly seeing eye to eye right now. She hates how much I work, but she knew what my job required when we got together. I don’t really understand how she is angry about it now when she assured me it wasn’t a problem a few years ago.”  
“Women are funny that way man, I’ve been married several times because women are funny that way. Look, it’ll blow over, she’s just worried about you. I mean, you had some dude break into your house and beat the crap out of you, and she’s the one who saved your life. Things have been crazy lately, when it dies down, she’ll relax.”  
 _It won’t die down though_ , Nick thought bitterly, _this is my life now, and Hank doesn’t even know the half of it._

“Yeah, maybe you’re right, I don’t know.”

“She’s a good girl Nick, don’t fuck it up.”  
Deep down, he knew it was over, that he needed to end it, for her own safety, but again, he couldn’t tell Hank that so he just nodded.

After they finished their drinks, they parted company, and Nick began to feel ill at ease as he headed home. Being in the house alone now seemed terrifying. As he pulled down his street he spotted the familiar yellow bug parked out front and almost laughed out loud in relief. Somehow the Blutbad knew he was needed and was there waiting.

Monroe was sitting on the top step of the porch and stood up as Nick got out of the car.   
“Dude, where the hell have you been? Did you catch any bad guys today?” He gestured widely with his hands in true Monroe form as he asked the second question and Nick felt comforted that he was behaving normally.

“Yes, we got the guy, and I went for a drink with Hank, I’m sorry I kept you waiting.”  
“Hey, hey, it’s cool, have you eaten? I picked up some stuff, thought I would cook for you.”  
Nick couldn’t help the smile that spread across his face. He knew half of this was bravado on Monroe’s part to make him feel better, but it was also just how the wolf was, and he appreciated that immensely.

“Sounds good. I’m starved actually.”  
Once he got the door unlocked Monroe barreled into the kitchen, being his usual slightly clattering self and got to work on dinner. Nick had noticed the way he had entered the house first, sniffing quietly to make sure it was empty, and appreciated Monroe’s effort to try to hide the fact that he was actually there to protect Nick but didn’t want it to be too obvious. He just followed him into the kitchen and sat down to watch him as he worked. Monroe talked a blue streak the entire time about every topic imaginable. And things almost felt completely normal, like the previous night hadn’t even happened, but it had and Nick felt it hanging over them silently. But he gave in to Monroe’s jovial mood and relaxed.


	6. Chapter 6

He woke with a start in the middle of the night and felt cool fear settle in his chest. Same as the night before he waited silently for any sign or sound of what had woken him and movement near the window caught his eye. This time he sat up fast and grabbed his gun before the intruder could get close to him.

The man by the window jumped at his sudden movement and put his hands up.

“Nick, dude, drop the gun, it’s me.”  
Monroe moved into the light of the window more so Nick could see his face.

Nick exhaled the breath he was holding and lowered the gun.

“Monroe, what the hell are you doing? You scared the hell out of me.”  
“Sorry, I heard something outside and was checking it out.”  
“What was it?”  
“Not sure, I didn’t get a visual, but I think they are gone now.”

“It might have been my neighbour, they seem to do things at strange hours outside.”  
“No, they aren’t home. Look, don’t worry about it, whoever it was is gone, go back to sleep.”  
“I think I will need a good stiff drink before I can do that.”  
With that he slid out of bed and headed for the stairs, he could hear Monroe’s footsteps behind him and wasn’t surprised.

Grabbing two juice glasses and a bottle of whiskey he poured them both a couple of fingers before downing his in one gulp and refilling. He wasn’t entirely sure how much more his nerves could take of all of this. Not just the attempted rapes, but the entire creature world, his being a Grimm, all of it.

Monroe watched him carefully and sipped his own drink.

“Nick, it will get easier to deal with. You’re still just in shock over all of this, and granted it was kind of dumped on you rather unceremoniously so you have every right to be shocked and freaked out. But give it time, it will become second nature, trust me, it’s in your genes.”  
Suddenly Nick felt angry. He was mad that his Aunt hadn’t warned him sooner, mad that he had to fend for his life and his body, mad that this was his genealogy at all. He really didn’t want to be a Grimm at that moment, he longed for his old life back, where monsters were just in the books.

Pouring another glass of whiskey he downed it and slammed the glass down, causing Monroe to jump slightly.

“I’m sorry, I just hate this. Why do I have to be a Grimm? God, Monroe, I just want my life back. I want my relationship with Juliette back to the way it was, I want the fairytales to be just that, fairytales and not real life.”

“Look on the bright side, if you weren’t a Grimm, you wouldn’t have met me.”  
Nick looked into the other man’s face and felt guilty about his rant. He knew how much Monroe relied on him now, just as much as Nick relied on him it seemed in some ways. Monroe clearly cared about him and was grateful for their friendship, and in truth, so was Nick.

“True, and I am grateful for everything you have done for me, and for being my friend through this. So I don’t regret that.”  
Monroe smiled softly, a mixture of pleasure and relief on his face.

“It’s just that I’m kinda hitting the end of my rope here, and I know that I’m not even half way there in learning about all of this. Every friggin’ day it’s something new and this is just Portland, what the hell is going on in the rest of the world?”

“Much the same, I mean, Portland is a little more active than some cities, but part of that is because there hasn’t been a permanent Grimm here for a long time, not since your Aunt left and so things got out of hand a bit.”  
“And now I am here, and suddenly they are all vying to be the one to join with me, so things are getting more hectic.”

“Well, I don’t know what to tell you about how to handle that. As you get stronger as a Grimm and learn more about how to kill them, it might scare them off.”  
Monroe was trying to sound hopeful at his suggestion, but failing.

“I half wonder if it would be just easier to join with someone and get it over with, then they would leave me the hell alone.”  
Monroe gaped at him for a second, and Nick suddenly realized what he had just said.

“I didn’t mean that, sorry, I don’t know what I’m even thinking right now, my head is all over the place.”  
“Hey man, I get it, but please don’t just give yourself up to someone like that, the consequences could be greater than you realize. Besides I’m here.”  
“You’re here? For what exactly? Are you suggesting I join with you?”

Monroe’s face immediately turned red and his eyes widened.

“No, no, dude, I meant that I’m here to help you and protect you, that’s what I meant.” His hands were flailing a little at this point. But suddenly he turned serious, though his cheeks were still red.

“Ok, you know what, yeah, if you suddenly decide that you are going to just give yourself up to someone, please consider me, because let’s be honest, I’m the one who is least likely to hurt you and I have no ulterior motives and won’t ever exercise my control over you.”  
Nick was speechless. He had no idea how to respond to the suggestion and really only wanted to get the hell out of this insane and really awkward conversation as fast as possible.

Monroe clearly felt his discomfort, waving his hand at him nonchalantly.

“You started this conversation man, by saying you were thinking about giving in, and I’m telling you not to. But if you do, don’t be stupid.”  
With that Monroe drained his glass, stood and went back upstairs to the guest room. Nick continued to stand completely stunned in the kitchen. He hadn’t even entertained the idea of actually giving in and joining with someone until he had blurted out his earlier comment and he had only said it in frustration. He didn’t actually mean it, but clearly Monroe had taken it seriously. Nick couldn’t believe the Blutbad had suggested himself as a viable option. He had never considered it ever, not even one iota and it was painfully clear that Monroe had thought about it, the way he had spoken gave away that he had considered the idea at least once already.

The part that really struck Nick most at that moment was that the suggestion wasn’t a bad idea. It would actually solve a massive problem for him and he knew Monroe was right. He would never hurt the Grimm, and would never exercise his power over him. It would just be another way in which the Blutbad was protecting him from the rest of the world, like he always seemed to be doing lately.

Nick was beginning to realize based on their recent conversations that Monroe was far more attached to him than he had ever considered or realized and he really didn’t know how to take that fact. He knew the wolf was an isolationist, but it was becoming clear that it wasn’t entirely what he wanted, it was just a choice he made to be a better person. Nick was his only real grasp on the rest of the world aside from passing acquaintances and he clearly put a lot of stock on their relationship.

Draining his third glass of whiskey Nick made his way upstairs back to bed. He knew he still wouldn’t be able to sleep for a while, but this time it would be for a completely different reason.

 

* * *

 

The alcohol had its desired effect and Nick eventually fell asleep. But awoke early to the sound of Monroe making coffee in the kitchen at the crack of dawn.

He lay in bed for a while, debating on going downstairs as he was still unsettled about their conversation during the night.

Finally realizing he couldn’t avoid the man forever; he was in his kitchen after all; he made his way downstairs.

Monroe silently poured him a cup of coffee and handed it to him and turned back to the apple he was slicing on the counter. After about five minutes of silence, Nick couldn’t stand it any longer, he was surprised he was the first one to crack actually.

“Monroe, I…”  
“Don’t, just leave it, let’s just pretend last night’s conversation didn’t happen. But do me a favour, do not make threats like you did again, because I don’t want to hear shit like that.”  
Monroe stared at him intently, getting his point across and Nick nodded.

“Agreed. I was just having a moment, it won’t happen again.”  
“Good. Now I have to go see a client about a clock today, will you be alright on your own?”

Nick cocked his head to the side.

“You realize I have a gun right?”

“You realize I have saved your ass twice right?” Then the wolf reddened again. “Oh, sorry, poor choice of words.”  
Nick couldn’t help the laugh that bubbled up his throat.

“Actually, the words were accurate, but yes, don’t say it out loud.”

Monroe nodded sheepishly.

“I’ll be fine, I have to go in to the station anyway, finish clearing up the dead prostitute case.”  
“Ok, well then, I will see you later.”  
“Yeah, see you later.”

With that the Blutbad left, his car engine roaring out on the road and Nick sat down with the newspaper, attempting to relax. But his mind was still restless. He couldn’t shake the nagging feeling that Monroe’s suggestion was a good idea, despite knowing what that actually meant. Nick had been straight for his entire life, had several girlfriends, the current one he had considered proposing to, so entertaining the idea of having sex with another man seemed ludicrous. But he had developed a bit of a natural curiosity, despite himself. Mainly though, and he kept reminding himself of this, the only reason to do so would be to protect himself from the other Wessen who were after him, it was purely self-preservation.

He stopped in his mental roller coaster and realized that he was thinking as though he had actually made the decision to do this and in truth, he hadn’t. Rubbing his face in frustration he headed upstairs to get ready for work. He was desperate for a distraction at that point, but wasn’t sure he would find one.


	7. Chapter 7

The storm rolled in early in the afternoon and it poured for the rest of the day. After he and Hank had tied up the case and submitted their report, Nick headed home. It was rare for them to be without something to work on but he wasn’t going to look a gift horse in the mouth. He was far too distracted to work on anything anyway.

As it got dark outside he started wondering where Monroe was and despite himself, started feeling nervous about being alone at night. This only intensified when the storm knocked the power out.

He lit a fire in the fireplace and found as many candles as he could and sat with his gun waiting for the Blutbad to come home.

When it hit eleven he finally caved and called, worried that something had happened to him.

“Hey, Nick, I’ll be there soon, sorry, something came up, are you ok?”  
“Yeah, yeah, I’m fine, I was just worried that something had happened to you, after the beat down you got and everything.”  
“Oh, no man, nothing like that, my car got stuck in some mud at my clients place, it’s been a real mess all day, but I’m finally free, I’ll be there soon.”  
“Ok, well, I’ll see you soon then.”  
“Yeah, dude.”

He heard the other end click as Monroe hung up and felt better knowing that he was ok and coming soon.

Soon was almost an hour, but when he heard the familiar engine coming up the street, Nick couldn’t help but go to the window to watch him pull up. By the looks of things, he had been really stuck in the mud, the tell tale splotches were all over the car still despite the heavy rain.

Monroe was even worse, with mud caked up to his thighs and he was clearly soaked through as he walked up to the door. Nick opened it before he even got to the porch and grinned at him in amusement.

“Stuck in the mud huh? Kinda looks like you sunk ten feet down.”  
“It was a big puddle, and my car is small dude, the client didn’t warn me about his driveway before I got there, jackass.”  
“Ok, well, you aren’t tracking all of that mud in here, Juliette will kill me, go around back and strip in the laundry room, I’ll get you a towel.”  
Monroe glowered at him for a second, but then nodded and relented. Nick relocked the front door and then hurried to the back and opened it for the wet Blutbad. Once he had gotten him into the laundry room he grabbed a candle and ran upstairs to get the aforementioned towel.

As he returned to the laundry room, he could see the door was open a crack still, and he could see Monroe standing in his boxers through the crack in the candle light and stopped walking despite himself. He had no idea the other man had a body like that underneath all of his flannel and oversized t-shirts. He was muscular and sculpted and Nick couldn’t help himself from staring. Monroe glanced up and Nick moved before he got caught, quickly making noise to announce his presence so he wouldn’t seem like the stalker he had just been behaving like. Monroe opened the door a crack and gave him a strange look but took the towel and disappeared momentarily. Nick quickly returned to the living room and sat back down in front of the fireplace. He heard Monroe go up the stairs, obviously to get fresh clothes, but neither said anything.

Nick knew he had to get a hold of himself. He felt like he was losing his mind and didn’t know what in hell to do to stop it.

He heard Monroe come back down the stairs and then the fridge opened and then he was there beside him, handing him a beer before sitting down on the couch.

They sat silently for a while, drinking.

“How long has the power been out?”  
“Since around five.”  
“Wow, that’s a long time, must be something big.”  
“Yeah, well, the storm was pretty fierce so...”

Nick hated this, he hated making small talk but didn’t know how to overcome the awkwardness between them or if they ever would.

They returned to silence once more and Nick couldn’t help the way he was fidgeting with the cushion he had on his lap.

The silence was broken by the sound of glass shattering in the kitchen. Monroe was up instantly, grabbing Nick and shoving him behind him protectively. The sound of footsteps came from the kitchen then and based on what he was hearing, Nick counted two intruders and found it odd that they might start working together. The footsteps separated, indicating they were each coming from different directions around the house. The first showed himself to the left, it was a Jagerbar, and Nick wondered if it was the same one who had attacked him the previously. Monroe emitted a low growl, and though he couldn’t see his face he knew that the wolf was showing his teeth.

The second intruder came in from the right, another Jagerbar, younger and by the looks of things, female. Nick understood then. The female was there to distract Monroe while the male grabbed Nick. Judging by Monroe’s shift in stance, he understood the plan as well. It was then Nick realized that he had left his gun upstairs when he had gone and got Monroe a towel. Silently cursing himself for being a moron, he knew he had to find a way to get upstairs to get it.

The female lept suddenly at them and Monroe went into a defensive stance, attempting to deflect her attack. She hit him full on, knocking them both to the floor and Nick took the chance and started running for the stairs. The male reacted to his movements and gave chase and caught him halfway up the stairs, shoving him down roughly and pinning his arms over his head. Nick kicked at his shins, hoping to knock him off balance and down the stairs, but he got a heavy punch to the side of the head for his efforts. Grabbing hold of both of Nick’s wrists the Jagerbar started pulling him up the stairs with little attempt at being gentle and then into Nick’s bedroom where he shoved the door closed with his foot before turning his attention to the man on the floor.

Nick could hear Monroe still fighting with the female downstairs, though it sounded as though they were getting closer. Clearly he knew where Nick had been taken and was trying to get to him, and she was doing her best to stop him.

The male looked down at him and laughed darkly. Still dizzy from the punch Nick tried to get moving towards the bathroom where he knew his gun was but didn’t get far before receiving a kick to the stomach.

Gasping for air and gagging from the blow he slumped to the floor and tried to will himself to move again.

The Jagerbar grabbed him by the back of his shirt and lifted him almost entirely off the ground, throwing him on the bed on his stomach before ripping the shirt off and then grabbing his pants and tugging them off.

Then he was on him, straddling Nick’s thighs while undoing his own pants and Nick strained to hear if Monroe was any closer to him. Based on what he could hear, they were still downstairs and cold fear went through his body. He was on his own, and he knew he needed to start fighting hard. He heard what sounded like a bottle opening and took the opportunity when the other man was distracted to jump. Rolling fast and with as much strength as he could put into it he managed to knock the Jagerbar sideways and then they both toppled off the bed. Nick found his legs and put them underneath of himself and started running for the bathroom. His hand reached the gun just as the other man grabbed him and the gun fell to the floor along with them, just slightly out of Nick’s reach.

He was forced again onto his stomach and his legs spread apart. He felt the other man’s erection sliding against his entrance and a fresh wave of panic propelled him forward until his hand finally hit his gun and he got a grip on it. The Jagerbar tried to stop him, but Nick swung his arm fast and fired off a shot, hitting his attacker in the shoulder and knocking him backwards. Getting some freedom Nick scrambled out from under him and quickly turned to face him, firing another shot, hitting the man in the stomach. The face of the Jagerbar disappeared, revealing the man underneath as a somewhat normal looking person before he slumped forward onto the floor.

He heard the other two coming up the stairs then, the gunshots having distracted them from attacking each other and both were now intent on finding out the status of their respective friends.

Monroe arrived first, taking in the scene quickly he jumped the body on the floor and crouched in front of Nick.

“Nick, are you ok? Did he?”

The open-ended question didn’t need to be finished.

“No, no, no, almost, but no.” He quietly put the gun down beside him and realized just how much he was shaking when he looked at his hand.

Suddenly Monroe was all around him, pulling him into his arms and holding on to him tightly while attempting to wrap his shirt around Nick to cover him just a little.

The female was shrieking at her partner, trying to wake him up and then yelling at Nick for shooting him. Nick just buried his face in Monroe’s chest, only mumbling for him to call 911. He felt Monroe pull out his phone and heard him comply. Telling the responder that two intruders had broken in and Nick had defended himself.

The female started to cry while leaning over her partner and Nick felt guilty, despite the fact that the man he had shot had been attempting to rape him, he still felt bad. The sirens were fast, and she seemed to realize that she was in trouble and took off running. Neither Nick nor Monroe attempted to stop her.

Nick then remembered he was nude.

“Monroe, I need clothes, I don’t want them to find me this way, I work with these people."

Monroe nodded and helped him into the bedroom where Nick quickly threw on his pants and a shirt, seconds before the cavalry burst into the room.

Wu was the first in the room, and seeing Nick his face became alarmed.

“Nick, what the hell happened?”  
“Um, these two broke into my house while we were here, the guy tried to attack me so I shot him, I didn’t have a choice.”  
He heard someone say they found a pulse from the bathroom and he felt some relief. He never wanted to be responsible for someone else’s death, no matter how horrible they might be.

“Where is the other one?”  
“She took off, once she knew I was a cop, she ran.”  
The officer in the bathroom came out with a confused expression on his face.

“Why are his pants down? He has lube all over his dick.”

Nick struggled with how to explain that. Thankfully Monroe stepped in.

“We caught the guy with his girlfriend, getting busy up here, that’s when he attacked Nick and the guy went crazy, Nick had no choice but to shoot.”  
He nodded as though that was exactly what had happened before throwing Monroe a grateful glance when the others weren’t looking.

The EMT’s arrived then and loaded the man on a stretcher and took him away.

The time passed quickly in a haze of police and questions. Renard arrived and asked Nick all of the same questions again, but seemed to conclude that Nick had acted accordingly and let it go. He would still have to fill out all of the firearms discharge forms no matter what, but it was decided he could do it tomorrow when things were more in order.

Dawn was breaking by the time they all departed and Nick and Monroe were left with a lot of damage to the lower level by Monroe’s epic fight with the female and a puddle of blood in the master bathroom.

Unsure how much more he could face that night Nick sat down on the couch and put his face in his hands. He felt Monroe sit down next to him and a warm arm go around his shoulders. He leaned against the larger man gratefully and finally relaxed a little.

“I don’t know how much more of this I can take.”  
“I know; they are getting creative now too. But it’ll be ok; I’m not leaving you unsupervised. I’m thinking you might want to brush up on your self-defense classes though.”  
Nick sighed heavily. He knew he was exhausted and not really thinking clearly, but one thing stood out to him and it had been what was on his mind all day, even before the third attempted rape. The best course of action was to just join with Monroe. It would end all of the craziness and he could finally get back to normal. Though he knew it wouldn’t be normal. Their relationship would be changed forever, and he was certainly scared that it would ruin their friendship and drive them apart. But at the same time, and he shuddered as he remembered feeling the other mans erection against his ass, he couldn’t take another almost rape. All three times, the attackers had come within inches of getting inside of him and he knew it was only a matter of time before one of them finally succeeded, no matter how much Monroe tried to protect him.

The pros of joining with Monroe outweighed the cons on paper. He knew he was ignoring the obvious fact of what they would actually have to do, in fact he was doing his best to forget about that entirely. Instead he focused on figuring out how in hell he would even broach the subject with Monroe. The wolf had given him the green light during their conversation the previous night, but it was said in such a way that he knew Nick would never consider the idea anyway, so he was already off the hook essentially. Little did the Blutbad know, he was far from off the hook. Nick worried briefly that Monroe would back out, would change his mind and he would be left alone to deal with this, at the mercy of whoever took a chance at him next. But Monroe didn’t strike him as the type to back out of his word, no matter how cavalier he had said it initially. He knew without a doubt that he would probably do what Nick wanted, no matter how uncomfortable it made him.

“Monroe, I have been thinking.”  
He both felt and heard the larger man grunt in question next to him, clearly unsuspecting the turn this conversation was about to take.

“Remember what we were talking about last night?” He felt him stiffen slightly next to him, he was clueing in.

“I can’t do this anymore, I can’t have any more almosts, so I think we should join, and be done with it.”  
Monroe tensed fully at that point, breathing through his nose and staring intently at the fire. The minutes ticked by in silence and again, Nick found himself to be the one who couldn’t stand it.

“Look, I know how insane this sounds, but this entire situation is insane, and you were right. You are the only one who won’t hurt me, the only one who won’t exercise your power over me and it would stop the others from coming after me.”

The entire plan was sound, in the midst of insanity as it was, but Monroe remained silent for a few minutes more.

“Ok, seriously, say something, you are the one who suggested it, and you told me to tell you when I had made the decision to just give up so….”

He was cut off by Monroe’s mouth on his own and it was his turn to go tense in surprise.

Nick wasn’t sure what exactly to do at that moment. On the one hand, he realized that in a way, this was what he had just asked for, though he honestly hadn’t meant for them to go ahead right at that moment, he wasn’t ready yet. But on the other hand, it wasn’t that bad. Monroe’s beard tickled his chin and his lips were firm but gentle.

When Monroe pulled back, the expression on his face told the story. Nick had just been tested. The Blutbad was clearly trying to figure out just how serious Nick was and he seemed to have an answer, even if Nick didn’t.

“You aren’t ready for this.”  
“Well, no, not right now, after everything that has just happened, I’m gonna need a minute, but don’t write me off just yet.”  
Monroe looked down and nodded, sliding his arm off of Nick’s shoulders.

“I’ll get the broom and start on the glass in the kitchen.”  
With that he rose and went to do as he had said, leaving a very confused Grimm behind on the couch who didn’t even know where to begin at anything at that moment.

 

* * *

 

 

It took almost three hours for them to clean up the mess entirely. A special team came in the morning to deal with the blood, but the rest of the broken stuff and general disaster had to be dealt with by Nick and Monroe.

When they had finished, Nick had showered and gotten ready to go into the station to fill out the weapon discharge forms while Monroe stated he needed to work on his clients clock and would do so from his own house where his tools were. The sentences were short, slightly terse and to the point and they both left without saying goodbye.

Nick felt on edge all day. As the day went on he began to feel more and more angry. It was Monroe’s stupid idea after all, if he wasn’t willing to go through with it, why had he suggested it in the first place. And what the hell had that kiss meant? Then Nick remembered that Monroe actually thought he was the one who wasn’t ready and in so many ways, he was right, but he hadn’t meant for them to get down and dirty right at the moment he mentioned it anyway so the wolf had no right to get all icy with him.

By the time he got home, he was ready for a fight and actually cursed out loud when he saw that the Blutbad wasn’t at his house yet. He realized that Monroe had made no promises to come over that evening as it was and he couldn’t stop the hollow feeling of guilt and grief that came over him that maybe he would never come back, that their entire relationship was over.

He sat on the couch with a beer and waited, angry enough that he wasn’t ready to reach out just yet and instead would let Monroe make the next move this time.

Six came and went with no sign. Nick kept the TV off, ears craning to hear the familiar engine growl down the street.

Seven came and went with still nothing. Nick was now checking his phone repeatedly for any missed messages. He was beginning to feel like a teenage girl distraught over her first crush.

When eight came and went, he felt defeated. Clearly he had really fucked up and now it was done. Not feeling hungry he grabbed another beer and went upstairs to drink it and try to sleep.

At eleven he heard the roar coming down the street. Relief washed over him in waves and he almost jumped out of bed to run down to greet him. As it was he calmed himself and simply sauntered down, busying himself with getting another beer to appear as nonchalant as possible. Monroe came clattering in the front door, kicking off his boots and hanging his jacket.

“Nick, I’m sorry man, I should have called, I had to get some parts for the clock and it became a wild goose chase all over Oregon and then I had to take it back to my client.”  
Nick waved his hand at him.

“No worries, I’m fine, nothing exciting going on here.”  
“Did you get the paperwork done alright? No more follow up or anything?”  
“Nope, nothing, it’s all signed off on.”  
“Good, good, man. You hungry? Oh, it’s kinda late, you’ve probably eaten already.”

Nick was a bit stunned at how Monroe was just back to being himself. Suddenly he felt as though he was missing something, some key piece of the puzzle and it was frustrating him to no end.

“Um, no actually, I lost track of time myself so I never got around to it.”  
“Oh, well give me a few minutes, I’ll whip us up something.”

Nick could only nod dumbly as the wheels in his head tried to work out what the hell was going on between them. He quietly sat down and watched Monroe as he moved around the kitchen talking a blue streak about his day and the saga of his hunt for parts.

Finally, Monroe seemed to notice Nick’s silent stare because he turned to him, his face serious for the first time since he had got home.

“Dude, let’s not talk about it tonight ok? Let’s just be normal for the evening and worry about the rest of the shit tomorrow, we’re both exhausted, and it’s been insane the last twenty-four hours, so just relax, for a night.”

Nick was a bit taken aback at this declaration but realized he was right, they were both over tired and that was never a good time to make or act on big decisions. Taking a deep breath Nick nodded and smiled softly at the larger man.

“You’re right, I’m sorry, what are you making?”

With that Monroe relaxed and started rattling off what he was doing and gesturing around the kitchen like he always did. Somehow they managed to have a normal conversation while they ate, avoiding discussing anything Wessen related for once. After the dishes were done they both went up to bed to crash, since they hadn’t gotten any sleep the night prior. Nick felt his exhaustion lay over him like a heavy blanket the moment he got into bed and was out before he even realized.


	8. Chapter 8

It was eight in the morning when Nick’s phone started buzzing beside his head. Still exhausted he was in no mood for pleasantries when he answered.

“What?” He managed to slur out, half asleep.

“Well good morning to you to, would you mind waking up and meeting me at a crime scene? Or do you need more beauty sleep?”  
Hank was awfully chipper for that early in the morning, particularly since he was probably standing next to a dead body.

“I need coffee, but then I’ll be there.”  
“Ok, I’ll text the address, you might want to forgo breakfast though, its pretty gruesome down here.”  
“Thanks for the tip, see you in a bit.”  
He hung up and sat up, groaning at the pain behind his eyes as the sun worked it’s way in. He could hear Monroe in the kitchen again, and couldn’t understand how he could be up so early himself.

Nick washed and got dressed before going down, since he knew he couldn’t keep Hank waiting.

Monroe looked surprised to see him dressed with his coat on when he came in the kitchen but smiled in a friendly manner as the younger man poured himself some coffee and downed it despite how hot it was.

“Hey, take it easy, you’ll give your throat a third degree burn like that.”  
“Yeah, I know, but I need caffeine before I dare try driving.”  
“Caught a case?”  
“Yeah, I gotta go, thanks for the coffee, I’ll see you later?”  
Nick hadn’t intended to phrase it like a question, but it came out that way.

“Yeah, yeah, I’ll be here.”  
“Ok, good, well, see you later then.”  
“Yup, have a good one.”  
Nick was hoping they could finally go through with the plan that night, despite the butterflies that crept into his stomach. He was as nervous as hell but that didn’t shake his resolve.

When he arrived at the scene, things were already in full swing.

“What’s the situation?”  
“It’s about time you got here.” Hank regarded him with one eyebrow up.

“Ok, I get it, but you know what I’ve had a rough couple of days.”

“M-hm, anyway, we got a male victim, name is Jeff Wickler, twenty-four, college student, studying to be a lawyer, and well, he’s been disemboweled.”  
“Seriously? Anything stolen, or any indication of motive?”  
They had reached the body by then and Nick could see that Hank was very serious about the disembowelment.

“Not that we can see, wallet was still in his pocket, money and credit cards still in it, his watch is expensive but still on his wrist. We are trying to figure out how he got here, where he was last night but his phone has been smashed so we’ll need tech to get us the info off of it.”  
Nick looked at the body, the placement, it was clearly a body-dump, meaning the actual crime scene was elsewhere. He only needed to look at the wound for a minute before he knew it was a Jagerbar responsible. He had to assume it was one of the three who had attacked him. Seeing as how the male from the recent night was still in the hospital and the one from a few weeks back hadn’t been heard from at all since, he was strongly suspicious it was the female. He needed to talk to Monroe.

“Right well, get the phone to tech and let’s get the body back to the lab, I need to go talk to someone who might know something.”  
Hank looked at him questioningly, but let it be.

Monroe looked surprised to see him home again so soon, but one look at Nick’s face told him why.

“What are we looking at?”

“The woman, the Jagerbar from the other night, I think she is responsible for the dead body we found this morning.”  
“Seriously, that would be strange, the females are usually not very violent, though they are all prone to it if they drink. Why do you think it’s her, or a Jagerbar at all?”  
“The man was disemboweled and the wound looks similar to what was illustrated in my Aunt Marie’s books. She was distraught when she left that night about her partner, maybe she got drunk and took it out on this college kid.”  
Monroe raised his eyebrows and shrugged.

“Yeah, I mean, it’s definitely possible, it’s gonna be hard to find her though.”  
“We have her partner, think he’ll talk?”  
“Not a chance in hell dude, stay away from him, but you could put surveillance out on the outside of the hospital, she’s probably visiting him.”  
Nick nodded, that was a good idea, though he still needed to tie her to the crime in the human world, and that was going to be damn near impossible. Hank would never believe some tiny woman had done the damage the body had sustained but at the same time, if she was on a tear, he needed to stop her, even if that meant doing it himself.

He called the hospital on the way to the station, checking to see if the male Jagerbar had received any visitors that day but they informed him he had been released the day before and put into police custody, so his shot at just waiting for her there was gone, she would be in the wind now.

The M.E. essentially confirmed his suspicions about it being a Jagerbar but it left Hank even more confused. As they headed to their desks to go over the material the phone tech had sent over, Nick noticed Renard looking at him a somewhat peculiar way, in fact he had noticed several looks from his captain lately, but had no idea what they meant. He had brushed it off as him being concerned over the break in and shooting a few days earlier, but it had been going on longer than he had realized.

His train of thought was broken by Hank.

“Hey, Nick, look at this, the kid made a phone call from this club Lion’s Den about two hours before he was killed, the GPS found the location, we should go check that out.”

As they stood Renard waved at Nick to come into his office. Hank looked at him questioningly, but nodded for him to go.

Renard waited until he closed the door before he started talking.

“I just wanted to let you know that the man who broke into your house was released from hospital into police custody yesterday.”  
“Yeah, I know, I called the hospital earlier to see how he was.”  
“Well, we have a problem, in the distance from the hospital to lockup he managed to get away, beating the crap out of the two officers who were transporting him in the process.”

Nick’s blood ran cold. He knew who the Jagerbar was coming after, and chances were, he was responsible for the college kid’s death.

“Ok, what do you want me to do?” He had to remain outwardly calm, despite his churning mind.

“Be mindful, keep an eye out and take care of yourself.”  
“Ok, well, I will, I’ll let you know if I see anything suspicious.”

“Good, if you see the guy, just stay away from him Nick, he’s strong and without your gun the last time, you would have been no match for him.”

The wheels in Nick’s mind were turning, it felt ever so slightly like Renard knew a hell of a lot more than he was letting on but he wasn’t sure how to really get the answer to that.

Renard only quietly opened his office door, releasing Nick and indicating their conversation was over. Nick dumbly walked out the door and went to join Hank, but his mind kept going, he really wanted to go talk to Monroe.

Hank didn’t seem to notice his silence as they rode over to the club and Nick was grateful. He intended on stepping outside once they had spoken to the club owner and looked around the place to call Monroe and get his views on the situation.

The club owner was a creepy kind of guy who revealed himself to Nick as a Reinigen and he was not very surprised at that turn of events. He willingly agreed to let Nick and Hank look around for the potential crime scene and scuttled back to his office as soon as he could.

Nick knew deep in his bones that something was wrong, but he kept ignoring it despite himself. Hank went into the back room that the pole dancers used for changing, leaving Nick to explore the upper balcony level. As he scanned his way across the back near the wall for any signs of blood he felt someone slam into him from behind and he was knocked flying, landing roughly on his stomach, his flashlight a good ten feet in front of him. Gasping for air he reached for his gun and found it gone, then the brick wall that had hit him from behind was grabbing his legs and dragging him out the back door towards the stairs and then into a storage room.

Nick’s next thought was his phone, wrenching it from his pocket he dialed Monroe.

“Hey Nick, how the case going?”

“Monroe, he’s out, I’m at the Lion’s Den…” A solid toed shoe hit his head then and he vaguely heard the sound of his phone being crushed. Hands were on him then, grabbing at his coat and wrenching it off, then at his waist, working on his belt. Nick knew he needed to fight back, to make as much noise as possible to alert Hank and started thrashing and grabbing for anything nearby and shouting. The Jagerbar landed a blow between his shoulder blades with his fist, and Nick felt like his lungs had been crushed and gasped for air. The hands returned to his waist and he felt his pants being undone. He could hear Hank calling his name but he was still downstairs and Nick was without a voice at that point and nothing was nearby to grab and throw.

The hands pulled his pants down, then his boxers and Nick made one last attempt at crawling forward before he was dragged back. The man straddled his thighs and he felt fingers against his entrance. All he could think was that this was it, there was nothing he could do, no way he could stop him and went limp. Then he heard it, the familiar roar outside and knew Monroe was there. He had no idea how the Blutbad had gotten there so quickly but he had to fight just long enough for Monroe to find him in the building. Using his hands he shoved himself upward from the floor fast, pushing his back into the man behind him, surprising him and knocking him backwards a bit, then Nick rolled over and swiftly brought his knee up into the guy’s balls causing a yelp of pain and giving him the chance to crawl out from under him. He heard Monroe’s feet on the stairs, he had heard the Jagerbar’s cry of pain and was coming for him, fast. Nick crawled as fast as he could away from the other man who grabbed at his ankles to get him back. Monroe came in from the side and hit the man full on. Nick took the opportunity to pull his pants back up, he could hear Hank coming and he really didn’t feel like explaining. Hank burst in with his gun drawn, but the Jagerbar trying to get away from the very angry Blutbad knocked him to the side. The same angry Blutbad started yelling at Hank to go get the guy.

“Go, that’s the guy, go get him.”  
Hank looked confused for a second but took off running after him. Monroe was at Nick’s side immediately, looking at him with very concerned eyes, all traces of wolf gone. Nick was still having trouble catching his breath after the punch to the back but he needed to say it.

“This… I can’t do this anymore… enough…”

Monroe understood immediately and nodded. He grabbed Nick’s coat and helped him put it on, then slid his arm around his waist and helped him up gently. Monroe put his hand on Nick’s jaw and gently turned his head to get a good look at the bruise on the side of his head and made a soft whistling noise with his teeth.

“I’m fine Monroe… let’s just go.”

“What’s up with your breathing? What did he do?”  
“He punched me… right between… my shoulders.”

“Ok, you’re going to the hospital, now, you could have broken ribs or any number of things.”

Nick was in no position to argue, he couldn’t get a deep enough breath to do so if he wanted to anyway, so he let the large man lead him down the stairs, leaning on him gratefully.

Hank came back in, saying he couldn’t catch the guy and took one look at Nick before radioing that they needed a bus. Monroe helped Nick into a chair and waited with him, one hand on his lower back supportively until the ambulance arrived.

Monroe waited at the hospital as he got checked out. He was glad to hear he didn’t have a concussion, and his breathing had returned to normal, though his back hurt like hell. The doctors cleared him, though warning him to take it easy and they left together quietly. It was dark outside as they went out and Monroe hailed a cab.

“I should call Hank, see where we are at with things, my phone got busted can I use yours?”  
Monroe leveled a stern look at him.

“No, you are going home to relax, like the doctor told you to and there will be no arguments.”  
“Monroe, I have to check in with them, this is my job, I’m not saying I’m going in to work with him or anything, just touching base.”  
“Officer Burkhardt you are going home, to rest.”  
Nick turned to face Renard, who he hadn’t even known was there.

“Captain, what are you doing here?”  
“I came to check on your status, I’m glad to hear you will be ok, but I told you to be careful out there, what happened?”  
“I, well, he jumped me from behind, I guess he was waiting for us to get there and Hank went to check the back and I went upstairs, everything seemed normal.”  
“You two should never have split up, I will discuss this with your partner, but for now, go home. I trust that your friend here will be keeping an eye on you?”

Nick glanced up at Monroe, who was looking at Renard with a mixture of suspicion and confusion and Nick felt a bit better that he wasn’t the only one who didn’t know what was going on.

“Um, yeah, this is my friend Monroe, he said he would stay.”  
“Good, I will call and check on you in the morning, for now, don’t worry about the case.”

With that Renard turned and headed back into the parking lot, and Nick and Monroe stood watching him quietly.

“Who is that? Your captain? What’s up with him?”

“I don’t know, oddly enough it was something I wanted to talk to you about later as it was.”  
“Yeah, we will talk about it, for sure.”  
Monroe guided him into the cab and slid in after him. They stopped by the club where they moved into Monroe’s car and then drove home. Nick told Monroe the details of the conversation he had had earlier with Renard and waited to hear what he thought.

“He’s something man, and I mean Wessen related, he obviously knows exactly what’s going on, but at the same time, it’s like he’s above it, he’s not after you so he doesn’t need you for power, meaning he has his own, but I don’t know how or what.”

Nick nodded, they would have to do some research, but his head was pounding and he knew he couldn’t do any more that night.

Monroe helped him upstairs and left Nick to change but stayed close by. Neither had much of an appetite and the pain medication was making Nick fall asleep on his feet, so going to bed seemed the obvious option.

As Nick settled in, Monroe quietly walked around the bed and laid down beside him, making it clear he was staying near for the night. Nick was grateful, he had been thinking he would feel better with Monroe close to him, but he hadn’t been sure how to approach it in terms of asking him to stay.

The combination of the painkillers and Monroe’s close proximity making him feel safe meant that Nick was out within minutes.


	9. Chapter 9

The sound of movement in the kitchen roused him in the morning. It was almost amusing how much this had become a routine for the pair of them.

Nick slid off the bed and winced his way into the bathroom, his shoulders stiff and his head throbbing. As he headed into the kitchen a few minutes later Monroe turned to him and handed him two painkillers and a glass of water before even saying a word.

“Juliette called, said she is going to stay with a friend in Pasadena for a few days, something about needing some serious beach time.”  
“When did she call? I didn’t hear the phone ring?”  
“You were out cold dude, it was about an hour ago. She seemed surprised to hear me on the other end of the line, but she was only relaying her plans and nothing more.”  
Nick nodded, it was really only delaying the inevitable at that point.

“Has Renard called?”

“Nope, heard nothing from any of your colleagues, and hopefully they will let you be for a day, I really think you need it.”

“Yeah, well, things have been a bit hectic lately, haven’t they.”  
They both laughed without much humour.

Nick realized that if he wasn’t going to work, then he had all day with Monroe for them to go through with their plan and get it over with. A coil of fear settled in his stomach, but he pushed through it, this wasn’t a time to be a coward.

“You know, this would be a good day to go ahead with what we agreed on.”  
Monroe turned slowly and looked at him, his face unreadable.

“Nick, relax, let’s worry about your new injuries healing first.”  
“Monroe, are you backing out on me?”  
He whirled around at this, facing Nick fully.

“NO, no, look, I just don’t want you to rush into anything.”  
“Holy shit Monroe, look at what I have been going through, if anything this is a good reason **_TO_** hurry, the faster it’s done, the faster all of these freaks will leave me alone.”  
Monroe nodded slowly, looking at the table.

“Look, I know you’re probably worried about this affecting our friendship and all that, but it won’t, you are doing me a favour essentially, and I’m very grateful and you will always be a good friend to me, that will not change.”  
Monroe laughed softly, but it didn’t seem to be out of amusement, it was almost sadness. But he nodded, as though he was acknowledging that Nick was correct in his assumptions despite it clearly being wrong.

“Fine, we’ll do it today, might as well get it over with.” He added somewhat bitterly.  
He turned suddenly and went to the sink to wash the cups, being a bit rougher with them than was necessary and Nick sat confused. He hated the fact that the tension was so thick in the air suddenly, but didn’t know how to get rid of it. More importantly, he wasn’t sure what happened next. They had agreed, but now what? Should he make some kind of move or just wait until Monroe gave him instruction?

He stood from the table, thinking that maybe he would go upstairs and give him some space, and see if he followed at some point but suddenly he changed his mind. He saw the moment as now or never and walked up behind the other man, standing close enough that he could feel the body heat radiating off his back. Monroe seemed to sense him there and turned slowly to face him, the mug he had been viciously scrubbing left in the sink.

Butterflies going wild in his stomach, he leaned in and pressed his mouth against Monroe’s and waited.

It only took a second, and then he got a response in the form of a hand on the back of his head and his kiss being returned hungrily. The feeling of being somewhat trapped should have been frightening but it had the opposite effect on Nick. Instead he leaned in even closer, letting the length of his body press against Monroe’s as he deepened the kiss, parting his lips and exploring with his tongue. All semblance of fear was forgotten at the moment as he realized just how much he liked kissing Monroe. It was different from Juliette or any other woman he had ever kissed. Monroe was firmer and hungrier, stronger and it held a level of eroticism he had never experienced before.

Nick felt a hand on his lower back, pulling him closer and he relished in the feel of the strong body against his as he was turned and pressed against the counter. Monroe’s mouth made a trail down Nick’s jaw to his neck, sucking just enough to pull a soft moan from his mouth, but not hard enough to make bruises or marks.

Hands began lifting his t-shirt and he complied easily, lifting his arms to allow the fabric to be pulled free. He could feel Monroe’s erection pressed against his hip and out of curiosity moved to create some friction, drawing a panting breath from the mouth against his clavicle.

Fingers teased his nipples before the warm mouth enveloped one, and then the other. Wanting to even the playing field he quickly worked at undoing the buttons on the tan and brown plaid shirt in front of him. Monroe dropped his arms long enough to let it hit the floor and then raised them as Nick pulled his t-shirt up and off.

Their mouths came together again fast and intense. Monroe started guiding them towards the stairs. Nick went along willingly, running his hands up Monroe’s muscular arms and down his taught back as they went.

When they reached the bedroom he felt fingers slide under the elastic of his pants before sliding them down and letting them fall to the floor. Then he was lifted gently and laid on the bed, the larger man settling between his legs and resuming their heated kiss.

Monroe’s body ground against his slowly but firmly, and Nick became a bit anxious to pick up the speed. The butterflies had returned, and while he appreciated the fact that Monroe was taking his time to make it easier and certainly more fun for Nick, he was worried about losing his nerve.

He slipped his hands between them and started undoing Monroe’s belt and then pants, Monroe helped him when he pushed them down and soon they were also on the floor. Nick noted with some amusement that the wolf wasn’t wearing any underwear.

Then he was back between his legs, realigning their bodies so their hard cocks were against each other and he began moving slowly, creating heat and friction that made Nick gasp. He had never felt anything like it. It was almost too good; he needed to stop it before he came way too soon.

“Monroe, we need to…” Was all he got out before he moaned loudly as the larger man applied a bit of extra pressure against his cock.

He received a surreptitious smirk before he felt Monroe get up and then he was gone from the room, and Nick was left completely confused. But then he was back, with something in his hand and as soon as Nick saw the bottle of lube he felt the fear really start to rise. Seeing that unassuming item hit home to him what was coming next. Swallowing his panic he kept reminding himself not to be a coward and that Monroe would never hurt him.

Monroe resettled between Nick’s legs, though knelt there instead of spreading his body across the smaller man. He squirted an ample amount of the lube on his fingers on his right hand before he slid it between Nick’s legs.

Nick focused on his breathing as he felt fingers trailing around his entrance. Monroe took his time, slowly tracing his index finger around Nick’s ass before pressing it inside slowly, tracing his tongue around Nick’s nipple at the same time. He felt the burn of being entered and closed his eyes, willing himself to remain calm and relaxed.

That calm disappeared the minute Monroe curled that finger and hit a spot inside of Nick that had him thrusting his hips entirely off the bed. Monroe waited until he was back down, pushing slightly on his hip before he did it again, only a bit softer this time and Nick grasped the blanket in both hands and whimpered and panted at the same time, desperately trying to control himself.

He felt a second finger slide inside of him, but the burn was weakened. In fact, all he could feel was the intense pleasure every time those fingers pressed that spot inside of him. He had no idea what he was feeling was even possible. He was completely incapable of forming full sentences so stuck to cursing instead.

Monroe let Nick fuck himself on his fingers for a while, adding a third when he was able. When he slid them out, Nick almost growled in disappointment. But then he watched quietly, with some trepidation, as Monroe applied more lube to his cock than was really necessary before crawling forward and covering Nick’s body like a blanket with his own again and pressing his erection against Nick’s ass. He felt his nerve slipping again and took a deep breath to steady himself. He trusted his friend completely, but he also knew it was going to hurt, no matter how gentle he tried to be.

When Monroe slid the head of his cock in, it burned even more than the fingers, but he gritted his teeth and kept quiet. He still wanted to do this, despite everything and wasn’t about to scare Monroe into stopping by letting him know how much it hurt.

Monroe continued the slow slide in until he was fully sheathed. Nick concentrated on relaxing as best he could. He knew being tensed up was only making it worse, he knew he had to release his muscles, but that was easier said than done.

Monroe stayed still, other than kissing Nick lazily, and waited for an indication from Nick that he was ready and he was very grateful for that.

As the burn slowly subsided, he realized that though the feeling of Monroe inside of him was foreign, it was not altogether unpleasant.

He moved his hips slightly, pulling his legs up farther to allow more room, and Monroe seemed to take this move as a bit of a go signal. He started slow, keeping things as gentle as possible until Nick moaned at the sensations enveloping him and then he picked up speed rather suddenly and desperately.

As Monroe’s thrusts became more intense, Nick could feel his cock pressing against the internal spot that the fingers had been teasing not too long before and he felt as though he had no control over his body. He finally managed to find rhythm in moving his hips with Monroe’s thrusts after several tries. This propelled them to move faster and harder.

Nick felt his orgasm building quickly and reached between them to grab his cock, stroking it hard and fast with their hips. It only took a few times before he was coming on his own fist and both of their stomachs.

Monroe yelled at the same time and slammed his cock all the way into him twice before leaning down towards Nick's shoulder.

It was only after he began coming back to earth that Nick could feel the sting and glanced over to see what it was and saw blood from a fresh wound on his shoulder. It occurred to him then that that was his mark, the final piece of the whole act of joining and he had forgotten about it completely. Monroe collapsed on top of him, breathless and they laid together for a few minutes, calming themselves before Monroe slid out gently. Nick couldn’t help the noise he made at the loss, and it earned him a smirk.

He watched as Monroe stood and headed into the bathroom and returned a few seconds later with two wash clothes. The first he used to clean up the mess Nick had made. The second he pressed against Nick’s new bite wound on his shoulder.

He smiled softly as Monroe looked down on him, concern etched on his face.

“Relax, I didn’t even feel you bite me, I’ll be fine.”  
 Monroe raised his eyebrow.

“Yeah, you were in your own little world there.”  
“I had no idea it was going to be like that, we should have done that sooner.”

Monroe’s smirk turned into a laugh before he leaned forward and kissed Nick gently.

“Ok, I’m getting a bandage for that. No reason to let it get infected or anything.”  
As he went to retrieve the necessary medical implements, Nick sat up and stretched slightly, he felt boneless with relief and happiness. He had zero regrets about going through with this; he was just surprised at how good it was. His mind was already trying to come up with ways to convince Monroe to do it again. He had always been attracted to women, but something about the big wolf turned him on immensely now, and he felt like no one else would ever compare to him.

Monroe bandaged his shoulder, taking care to make sure it was done right.

Nick pulled him down onto the bed when it was done and sprawled himself across his chest, soaking in the warmth and safety he felt in those arms. Monroe only laughed and pulled Nick even closer, nuzzling his temple softly with his nose.

It wasn’t long before he was asleep, feeling the best he had in years.

 

* * *

 

 

When he woke up, the bed contained only himself. At first Nick half wondered if he had dreamt everything, but feeling a slight sting in the bite on his shoulder brought him completely to reality. So where in hell was Monroe?

He listened hard for any sound the other man might be elsewhere in the house and there was nothing. Sliding off the bed and putting his pajama pants back on, he grabbed his t-shirt and slid it on as he headed down the stairs.

“Monroe?”

Again, nothing, the house was empty. Nick went to the kitchen to look for any sign of where he might have gone, a note or something, but there was nothing. He went back upstairs and checked around for a note, but found no sign the Blutbad had even been there.

Worry started to creep through him; that maybe he had pushed too hard to get Monroe to do what he wanted and now the other man was done with him for good. Nick had no intentions of just using him, but he had thought Monroe knew that.

Quickly changing into jeans and grabbing some shoes and his coat he headed to his car to go find him. Even if their friendship was over he still had to try to make things right, to try to work things out.

He wondered mildly if his sudden interest and need to be connected with Monroe was down to the fact that he was joined with the man, but he brushed that off. He was already fond of Monroe beforehand, and he only felt more kinship now because they had shared something so intense.

His phone rang as he was heading over to the small house across from the park. He answered it hopefully without even looking at the display.

“Monroe?”

There was a second silence, then “uh, no, Nick, it’s Juliette, your girlfriend, or have you forgotten about me?”  
Silently cursing under his breath, he tried to sound nonchalant, she was the last person he wanted to talk to at that moment.

“Oh hey, sorry, I was expecting a call from Monroe about something, but it’s ok, it’s good to hear from you, how is Pasadena?”  
He could hear her sigh in annoyance before she answered.

“It’s fine Nick, I’m going to stay longer, actually, I’ve been offered a job here at a clinic and I would like to take it.”

And so it was the end, he knew it was coming, but it still stung a bit.

“I see, well, I’m not going to stop you from doing what you want or what you feel is best for you, but I won’t be here waiting either.”  
“I know. I don’t expect you to. Things have been wrong between us for a while anyway, so I think this is for the best.”  
“Yeah, I understand, and I do agree.”  
“Ok, well, I’ll come get my stuff on the weekend I guess, a friend is going to help me move.”  
“Sure, I’ll see you then.”  
“Yeah, see you then.”

And then a dull click as she hung up. While he was a little hurt, he realized that it almost felt like a relief to be done with her. It was for the best for both of them and he knew that. He didn’t waste time dwelling on it, he had pulled up to the little cottage house with the stained glass door at that point. Monroe’s car was in the driveway, that was a sign he was around at least, whether he would want to talk or not though was another story entirely.

Nick knocked and waited, and then waited some more. On the third knock the door finally opened and the face that greeted him was surprised for a moment, but then unreadable.

“Hey, why did you leave?”  
“Your safe now, I wasn’t needed anymore.”  
That stung worse than Juliette breaking up with him.

“Monroe, I didn’t want you to leave, and you are still needed, I care about you as my friend and I want you around. I do acknowledge that what we did was to protect me, but I don’t want things to change between us, and I certainly don’t want you thinking that I was just using you.”  
Monroe was looking slightly emotional, but less angry at that point, though there was still some sadness.

“You care about me as a friend.”  
“Yes, very much so, why would you think otherwise?”

Monroe ushered him in off the step at that point, having a public argument in a town full of Wessen wasn’t the best plan.

“Nick, it’s not a case of me thinking otherwise, I know you care about me as a friend, but the problem is that I care about you a lot more than just as a friend.”  
Nick stopped in his tracks half way across the kitchen. All of a sudden the pieces clicked into place, the way Monroe protected him all this time, the way he took a beating for Nick, was always doing what Nick asked, and the way he had looked at him after they had joined, just before he kissed him one last time. It all made sense now.

“Monroe, I’m so sorry, I never even knew or realized.”

“Yeah, I know, which was fine up until this point because I sort of felt like I could get over it. But then we joined, because I had to protect you and that moment after, when you laid on my chest and fell asleep made me hopeful but then I remembered Juliette, that you and I can’t happen and I think it’s best if we just spend some time apart, for my own sanity.”

“Juliette and I are done. As of just a few minutes ago actually, but it was coming for some time. I know I can’t protect her from all of the insanity in the world and still deal with everything myself and we were growing apart.”  
Monroe looked at him quietly, clearly on edge, his entire admission had made him back away from Nick reflexively, as though he was waiting for the hammer to fall, for Nick to run from the room, or tell him off for being ridiculous. But Nick had no intention of doing any of those things. Since they had joined he was looking at Monroe completely differently, wanting him differently and his own curiosity was telling him to go for this, to try it because it could be amazing. At the same time though, he wanted to make sure he didn’t hurt the other man, he had to be careful.

“Look, I’ll be honest, I have never considered you anything more than just a friend,” Monroe deflated, “but, wait, listen, since this morning, you are the only thing I am thinking about. I’m not going to lie, I’m not in the same place emotionally as you right now, but I’m hoping you’ll give me the chance to catch up with you, because I want to.”

He looked at him meaningfully, making sure he was clear and Monroe nodded softly before suddenly charging forward, grabbing Nick’s face and kissing him hard, backing him against the counter.

It was safe to say that the Blutbad was on board with the plan. Sliding his hands around Monroe’s waist he pulled him closer and returned the kiss eagerly. The hands holding his face slid down his body and cupped his ass before lifting him on the counter and wrapping his legs around the body in front of him. The same hands slid his coat off his shoulders and then pulled his shirt up and off. Monroe’s mouth traveled down his neck to his chest, and then began licking and teasing his nipples. Running his fingers through the unruly hair on the head in front of him, Nick leaned back and arched his back, pressing himself towards the busy mouth. He felt his belt being undone, and then his pants and then the fingers were wrapped around his cock, pulling it free and stroking him slowly but firmly.

Nick had taken up muttering in curse words again, the hand making his hips come off of the counter ever so slightly and he wanted nothing more than the mouth that was currently residing at his bellybutton to take his cock into it.

Monroe’s mouth moved further south, but still only within teasing distance, clearly he was enjoying making Nick suffer and wait.

“Fuck, Monroe, please…”

This earned him a under eyebrow glance and smirk before he finally gave in to what Nick wanted. As he slid his mouth down, Nick let out a low moan that was shaky at points when Monroe’s tongue hit him.

Monroe slid his mouth back up; sucking intently the entire way and Nick couldn’t help how his hips followed him, desperate to keep the contact. As Monroe created a rhythm of sucking up and down his shaft, Nick’s constant stream of swear words grew in volume. As before, he had never experienced this kind of intense pleasure before. Sure he’d had blowjobs, but nothing quite like what he was receiving at that moment. He felt as though he would fall off the counter when he came, if he didn’t rip the handles off the cupboards first.

He could feel himself getting dangerously close as it was at that moment.

“Shit, fuck, Monroe, I’m gonna come, FUCK.” The tongue flicked at the underside of the head of his cock and that was all it took. Monroe sucked him fully as he came hard into his mouth. Nick was seeing stars and felt limp when he was done. Monroe braced him with his hands on his waist and caught his mouth in a kiss, reminding Nick that he wasn’t actually finished yet.

Nick knew that he was no where near as experienced in giving head, seeing as he had never done it before, but wanted to try it. He returned the kiss hungrily and slid his hand down cupping the front of Monroe’s pants, earning himself a groan and a quick movement of hips. Monroe was rock hard, and Nick enjoyed teasing him by stroking him through the fabric, just like the other man had teased him a bit as well. He slid off the counter and spun them so that Monroe was now backed against the counter. He couldn’t lift the Blutbad, so settled with going down onto his knees in front of him instead. The look of desire on Monroe’s face as he did so was rather gratifying, he could get used to that.

He took his time, lifting Monroe’s shirt and kissing his stomach and dipping his tongue into his bellybutton as he undid Monroe’s belt, then the button on his jeans and then the zipper. Not surprisingly, Monroe still wasn’t wearing underwear. Nick had no idea why he found this to be such a turn on, but it was. Monroe’s erection came free and Nick stroked it slowly a few times, mostly out of curiosity. The first time they had been together, he hadn’t really touched Monroe, and now he was intending on doing so, rather extensively.

Monroe bucked into his hand, angling to get Nick to move faster. Like Monroe had done, Nick simply glanced up at him, though his face was all innocence and he almost laughed at the growl he received in return.

He tentatively licked and then sucked the head of Monroe’s cock, testing it out, while still stroking him. He was grateful that Monroe was gripping the counter to prevent himself from shoving his hips forward, and thereby his cock all the way into Nick’s mouth. Clearly he understood that this was Nick’s first time doing this, though he knew the patience would wear thin very quickly.

Gripping his cock, Nick slid his mouth down as far as he thought he could handle and then performed the same sucking and pulling Monroe had done to him. Judging by the sound the Blutbad made, he was doing it right, and he felt a little chuffed that he was doing well already.

Like Monroe, he found a rhythm in sucking and stroking with his hand until no amount of counter gripping could control Monroe’s hips.

“Nick, dude, I’m getting close...”

He repeated the long sucking motion one more time, running his tongue around the head of Monroe’s cock he heard him shout out ‘FUCK’ and then he could taste the come in his mouth. He tried to replicate the way Monroe had sucked away his own release but wasn’t sure if he got it quite right, though he wasn’t hearing any complaints above him, more just a lot of moaning and panting.

Monroe suddenly dropped down in front of him to his knees and kissed Nick hard, pushing him back so that he was on the floor with the other man covering him entirely. This was probably his favourite thing, when Monroe turned into his personal blanket, it always made him feel so secure. He eagerly returned the kiss, sliding his arms around Monroe’s back and holding him close. When they finally broke from the kiss, they lay on the floor panting, foreheads pressed together.

“I know you aren’t in the same place as me emotionally, but I want you to know, I do love you.”

Nick couldn’t help but smile, he liked hearing that, even if he wasn’t in a position to return it yet, he knew he would be eventually.

“I’m not in the same place, but I know I will be, probably sooner than later.”  
Monroe returned his smile before kissing him again, this time less urgently, and more as a caress.

Neither had the energy to move after that, so they stayed on the floor, eventually lying side by side and talked and laughed and really got to know each other.

Nick told Monroe about his parents and Monroe told him about his own family. Things felt natural and calm and for the first time since he had found out he was a Grimm, Nick felt almost normal again.

 

_fin_


End file.
